Gaara's Baby Boy
by Hyuchiha Ruki
Summary: He cares for the troubling infant. He bothers to worry when it cries. He even brought it with him to his office! And he can't seem to let it go. Why is Gaara like this towards some baby? Coz he loves it as if it were his own son. Gaara one-shot for Sorrel


**I'm depressed. My cat's been missing since yesterday. Where could he be?**

**-Kankuro walks in-**

**Me: My kitty! You're back!**

**Kankuro: What the heck…?**

**Me: Anyway, this fan fic is Gaara centric (I guess) and I'm dedicating this to my friend, Sorrel-Piedra, the one who sends me the funniest reviews and the most adorable PMs on Gaara, Kankuro, me and her! –laughing my ass off-**

**Kankuro: Gawd, I hate those.**

**Me: So, Sorrel, I hope you like this. Besides, it's about your oh-so-precious Gaara-kun. –laughs some more then smiles-**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

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_Why do I waste my time doing this?_

Gaara looked down from where he stood, staring back at blank eyes that were just like his. He was just glad those eyes he was looking at didn't show signs of insomnia, unlike him. Then that meant the youngster wouldn't have to cope with being a Jinchuuriki. He wasn't one, lucky for him.

Firmly grasping the wooden sides of the cradle, Gaara sighed and took another look at the baby. _Why do I have him here with me? _He'd ask himself in his mind. He knows very well that he should be working on paperwork now… but he was stuck with him.

A Kazekage can't leave his work, so he brought the infant to stay in his office. So, a crib stood beside his desk, facing the window so the baby could have his share of warm and cozy sunlight. But it distracted Gaara so much. He finds himself leaning over to the crib and looking at the baby.

_I should've left you in the room. I still don't know what made me want to bring you here with me. _Doubting of his decisions was a waste of time, definitely. Anyway, he shook his head slowly and sat back again on his chair, ready to make a grab for a document…

…till it cried.

Hearing the bawling, Gaara hurriedly stood up, letting go of the papers he had. His eyes shone with worry and his expression looked simply concerned. It wasn't like him to do such; he only did when the village was endangered.

One could've called it pathetic.

Once again, Gaara found himself peering down at the infant snugly laid in the crib. Instead of the rosy smile he had earlier, there were tears rolling down his cheeks now and his features were twisted in emotion.

Not knowing what to do, Gaara picked the baby up, cuddling it in his arms cautiously. He had no idea how to hold a baby, but he saw mothers do it with their baby's head hanging from one's shoulder. Following the example of the many women around Suna, Gaara did an impersonation.

He tried to ease the crying by mumbling gibberish to the infant, hoping maybe he'll calm down. But when it ended in vain, Gaara bit his lip and turned his head to see its face. Still, tears came and more shrieks followed.

_Is… Is he hungry? _Gaara thought, making a smart guess. Trying to see if his guess is right, Gaara carried the baby out into the hall, out of his office. After passing a few doors, he entered a room. It was the kitchen in the Kazekage Tower (A/C: Fine, so I don't know if there _is _a Kazekage Tower) and to Gaara's relief, there was milk in the fridge.

Putting the baby on the counter beside the fridge, Gaara ransacked the refrigerator for the carton of milk every fridge has. When he had found it, he looked around to see if he could use something to substitute a baby bottle. No luck.

_Spolrch._

The Kazekage's eyes grew when he heard the sound. It was quite familiar, actually. It was the sound made when… well, babies passed dirt. The crying may have ceased for now, but Gaara now knows that the issue wasn't exactly hunger.

Putting the carton of milk back again, Gaara picked the baby up and gave its diaper a few sniffs. When he was sure that the diaper _is _the issue, he made a face and thought, _Do I really have to?_

Seeing that he didn't have much of a choice, Gaara took the baby with him back to the office for his diaper change. He wouldn't have a problem with the necessary materials for the mother of the infant left some diapers and such in a bag along with the baby.

One would say that the mother was actually very considerate, but for Gaara, she wasn't. He found the baby in a basket with that bag of baby clothes and baby things outside his doorstep just a few days ago. What kind of a mother abandons her son? And she expects the Kazekage to take it in?

Temari suggested that they surrender the infant to the orphanage and Kankuro agreed to the same thing. It was practical and probably the only choice that they have, but Kazekage Gaara didn't want it that way. An orphan would grow up in pain, knowing that the only ones who ever loved him left him. Gaara knew how it felt to be unloved, but not ever again and he didn't want anyone else taking that pain.

But what choice did he have? He wasn't married and he had no maternal instinct of whatsoever. Temari might've had some, but she's always outside Suna, usually in Konoha. Kankuro didn't have the slightest clue on baby care. So, Gaara promised that the baby would be taken to the orphanage… sooner or later.

As he peeled the sticker that kept everything on off, the stench of the baby grew stronger. It hurt Gaara's nose, making his twitch mildly, but he has been doing it for the past few days. Temari fed the baby so all he did was change its diaper. But he'd rather take the responsibility of the feeding anytime rather than the diaper changing.

After rolling up the miniature stink bomb, Gaara tossed it into the trashcan, still holding his breath. Reaching into the baby's bag, he found the powder and the baby wipes along with the new diaper. With a few finishing touches, he was done.

When he had brought the baby back to its crib, there was a smile on its face, as if thanking Gaara. All Gaara did was give it a glare and walk back to his desk.

Going back to the paperwork, Gaara had to fill in the necessary details for the baby's admittance to the orphanage. It wasn't easy, but soon he'd be off of his back. Taking one of the last few documents, Gaara was faced with the first line…

Child's Name:

He forgot about that. It seems that he hasn't named the child. But what use would that be? He'd be sent to the orphanage and then adopted. Wouldn't it be his parents to name him?

"Goo…"

_Goo? _With doubt, Gaara thought he heard the baby say something. Curious, Gaara leaned over to the crib again and looked down at the baby boy. His innocent smile hasn't faded away yet and Gaara was just glad that the infant didn't fear him. Indeed, the nameless, bald youngster could speak gibberish.

Quite amused, Gaara picked him up again. He didn't know why he did it, but maybe it was the unusual comfort and warmth he got from the baby's touch. He and the little shrimp were almost the same, actually. They shared the same bland eyes and the same red locks. It's as if he was his own son.

Then, the baby mumbled a word again, with not much difficulty…

"D-Da-Daddy…"

_Daddy? He called me daddy? Or is he just saying it simply? _Gaara troubled himself with this, thinking too much of it. That's really nice and touching for Gaara, but he's someone who has learnt to face reality. He wouldn't be called 'Daddy'… right? Besides, he sounded more like 'Dad-ee' than 'Daddy'.

"No, not Daddy." Gaara began to talk to the baby rather foolishly, making funny faces as he did, "Say 'Kazekage Gaara'."

The infant chuckled and answered, "Daddy." Gaara gave an angered look and snapped, "Gaara."

"Daddy."

"Gaara."

"D-Daddy."

"Ga-a-ra!"

"Daddy!"

The child seemed hopeless for Gaara. Quite amusing, yes, but hopeless.

He didn't want to let him go and soon, he had the baby on his lap as he worked on more of the paperwork. As he wrote on his desk, the baby obediently sat still on his lap, usually making spit bubbles or just chanting annoyingly, "Daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy…" And Gaara would growl "No, I'm Gaara. Say 'Gaara'." It was stupid, he knew. Obviously, the baby didn't understand a word.

It was surprising that Gaara was very patient with the infant. If he wasn't, he could've killed it with a Sand Coffin already. But, no, he held it in his arms as he did more of his paperwork, having a hard time since the baby sometimes squirmed.

Gaara finished the last form from the orphanage, until he discovered that the blank for the infant's name was still empty. He heaved a heavy sigh and turned to the child to see if he'll find something…

And he found the infant looking up at him from his lap with his hands ready to reach for Gaara, mumbling, "D-Daddy… Lo-Love Daddy.".

Gaara's eyes widened with both surprise and a sudden softening of his heart. All of a sudden, he just didn't mind the 'Daddy' thing and he began to stroke the child's head. It was nice to know that someone liked him, despite how distant they are, just like strangers.

Many people are luckier than he, even if he is Kazekage. And he guesses that this young boy is one of them. Out of nothing, Gaara touched his 'love' symbol on his forehead, remembering his sad childhood and sighed once again. He had a name for the child.

"Ren." Gaara muttered, "Maybe I'll put your name in as Ren." After all, Ren means 'love' in Japanese.

Gaara carried the child again, wishing that he'd be here in his office for as long as he wished. It would probably be hard for Gaara to surrender him to the orphanage. He'd be better off here with him.

Ren would have food, shelter and the support & care of the Kazekage. And of course, the love of the Kazekage.

It couldn't be. All they can do is accept it. As Gaara put the infant back in his crib, he gave him one last look before muttering, "Alright, I give up. You can call me Daddy." That made Gaara grin with sheer delight.

Gaara took the many papers from his desk and preceded to the door, ready to hand it to Kankuro so he can send it to the orphanage. Then, they'd probably pick the child up by sun down. How time passes by so quickly is such a mystery.

Before going out the door, Gaara looked back at Ren, who was now looking past his crib's wooden rails to stare back at the Kazekage, and thought with a heavy heart, _So, it's better to love rather than to be loved. Now I see._

And Gaara closed the door, making a noise not more than a thud.

Ren's eyes drooped and little did Gaara know that the baby raised his tiny hand and began to wave, mumbling in his baby voice,

"Bye-Bye, Daddy. L-Love Yo-ou."

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**Alright, so I don't know how the orphanage thing goes.**

**Kankuro: Gaara is _not _that pathetic.**

**Me: He was not pathetic here.**

**Kankuro: He was! From what I know, he could've killed the kid already.**

**Me: Are you saying he's OOC here?**

**Kankuro: ...Uh... N-No... It's...**

**-whacks Kankuro on the head with my fist-**

**Me: Ouch, Kankuro, ouch.**

**-mood change-**

**Me: If anybody else has anything either bad or good to tell me about my story, pls. leave a review.**

**Kankuro: She's crazy! Crazy, I tell you!**


End file.
